Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have disrupted several drug trafficking operations across Nigeria, intercepting large consignments of illicit substances and arresting multiple suspects linked to international smuggling networks.
According to NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, two separate drug shipments destined for Italy were intercepted at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, leading to the arrest of two suspects.
One of them, Friday Ehianuka, 37, was apprehended on March 20 while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Rome. He was found with 2,698 tramadol pills (225mg) concealed inside containers of skin-lightening cream in his luggage. Ehianuka, a Milan resident, reportedly told investigators he was promised payment in euros upon delivery.
In a similar operation on March 18, another suspect, Christian Agbonhese, 38, was arrested at the airport while preparing to travel to Milan via Lufthansa. A search of his luggage revealed 28,470 opioid pills, including tramadol and tapentadol, hidden inside two winter jackets.
NDLEA officers also intercepted drug shipments at a Lagos courier facility. One parcel contained one kilogram of a potent cannabis strain known as “Loud,” shipped from the United States, while another package bound for New Zealand concealed 158 grams of methamphetamine within a carton.
Across Nigeria, further raids led to significant seizures and arrests. In Kano State, two suspects were caught with 198 kilograms of skunk. In Lagos, operatives recovered 21,737 bottles of codeine syrup during a raid in the Ijora area, while two additional suspects were arrested on the Third Mainland Bridge with 8,380 bottles of the substance.
In Edo State, 97.5 kilograms of skunk were recovered from a suspect’s residence in Akoko-Edo. In Abuja, authorities intercepted a commercial bus along the Gwagwalada expressway, discovering 91,840 tramadol pills hidden in body compartments and arresting the driver.
Similarly, in Oyo State, a suspect was arrested with 71.2 kilograms of skunk allegedly smuggled from the Benin Republic through the Oyan River.
More seizures were recorded in northern Nigeria. Along the Kaduna-Zaria highway, operatives recovered 586,000 tramadol and exol-5 pills from one suspect and arrested another with additional tramadol tablets. In Taraba State, a suspect was intercepted with 77,660 tramadol capsules en route to Gombe.
In Adamawa State, six individuals were arrested following the seizure of 82.8 kilograms of tramadol hidden in a truck in Yola.
Babafemi said the operations form part of the agency’s sustained nationwide crackdown on drug trafficking networks. He reiterated the NDLEA’s commitment to intensifying surveillance and enforcement at airports, highways, and other strategic locations to curb the spread of illicit drugs.
